The Pact ~ Part Seven

"Ross, what took you so long?" Monica asked, as the group made their way out the door and onto the street.
"Long story," Ross said quietly, "Let's just go get some food."
The group ended up at Tom's Restaurant, a cheap eatery several blocks from Columbia University. The restaurant
was usually full of tourists, since the exterior had been used in the television series "Seinfeld". The group made their
way to the back of the small diner, and ordered their food.
"So, Ross, what happened this morning?" Joey asked, as the waitress brought the group their drinks.
"Well, it actually started last night," Ross said, unconsciously playing with his orange juice glass.

*The Night Before*

"Ross," Emily said, as their taxi pulled away from Monica's apartment building, "Does that Rachel girl hate you or something?"
"What?"
"Well, she kept shooting you a rather evil look," Emily explained, "and she wasn't very nice to me."
"Rachel is just...that way, I guess."
"She wan't being 'that way' to your sister...or anyone else for that matter."
"Emily, can we drop it? I don't want to talk about Rachel."
Emily shot Ross a look, then turned and looked out her window.

By the time Ross and Emily reached the hotel, the tension between them was so thick, that Emily simply got out of
the taxi as soon as it stopped. Ross hurridly payed the driver, and chased after Emily. Once they reached the hotel
room, Emily turned to Ross.
"What happened between you and Rachel?"
Ross was taken aback by Emily's question. How did she know?
"Um, wh-what?"
"I knew it," Emily had simply thrown out the question in order to get Ross' reaction. Her instincts proved true, and
she felt herself losing all logical control, as her anger toward Ross mounted.
"Emily, I can explain," Ross started.
"Oh, really," Emily seethed, "then explain."

*Morning*

"I told her everything," Ross said solemnly, "and, naturally, she flipped. She was mostly mad that I never told her,
but she also convinced herself that Rachel was the real reason I was so excited about this trip. She refused to talk
to me this morning, and, since I told her I was gonna meet up with you guys, I have a feeling that she is on her way
back to London," Ross shook his head in amazement. In one night, his entire world had been flipped upside-down.
He hadn't felt this bad since...since the night Rachel had told him that she'd kissed Mark.
"I'm so sorry, Ross," Monica said, and the others nodded in acknowledgement.
"It's okay. I mean, I think we'll be okay. This certainly isn't a divorce-worthy fight or anything," Ross laughed.
"Do you really think she went back to London?" Chandler asked, as he tried unsuccessfully to keep pancake syrup
off of Elaina's hands.
"Probably. She had quite a temper. I'll call her once she cools down. I want to stay and visit, and I hope that she will
understand that."
The others nodded, and continued eating their breakfast. They stayed and chatted for a while longer, but it didn't take
long for other patrons to notice that there was a movie star among them. While the native New Yorkers seemed to
care less, a group of tourists from Minnesota made a huge deal of it, and Joey ended up signing autographs for thirty
minutes. About halfway through Joey's autograph session, Chandler excused himself, and took Elaina to the restroom. When they emerged, he saw that Joey was still in the thick of it, and so he and Elaina stepped outside to
look at the surrounding shops. Monica noticed this, and decided to join them.
"Hey," Monica said, catching up with Chandler and Elaina in front of a small hat shop.
"Hey Mon," Chandler said, "Joey still signing stuff?"
"Yep," Monica replied, smiling at Elaina.
Elaina giggled, and buried her head in her Dad's shoulder.
"She likes you," Chandler said.
"Really?" Monica's smile broadened.
"She thinks you're pretty," Chandler said.
"Really?" Monica blushed slightly.
"She also really likes your food," Chandler grinned, "she is a lot like her father."
Monica laughed. "Well, I think she is just great. And definitely the prettiest little girl I've ever met."
"Well, I'll have to tell her that...once my hands are free," Chandler laughed.
Monica giggled, then looked up at Chandler. Her smile faded.
"So how do you do it?"
"Do what?"
"Take care of Elaina, all by yourself?"
"It's not that hard, really," Chandler explained, "I work from home a lot, and Elaina goes to a hearing and communication specialist three times a week. My boss is pretty understanding. Plus, I only sleep about
3 or 4 hours a night. That gives me lots of time to get stuff done," Chandler smiled at Elaina, whose eyes
widened in excitement as they passed a small toy shop.
"I guess we'd better go check this shop out," Chandler said, and walked into the shop. Once inside, Chandler put Elaina down, and the little girl immediately ran toward the stuffed animals in the far corner of the shop.
"You really only sleep 3 or 4 hours?" Monica asked.
"Yeah. When Rebecca first left, I didn't sleep at all. I had no idea what I was doing, and I was really worried about
Rebecca. Eventually, I realized that she had made the choice to leave, so I concentrated on raising Elaina. She
became my entire world. She's learning sign language a lot faster than I am, though," Chandler laughed.
"You seem to be doing pretty well," Monica said.
Chandler nodded, and looked at Monica. She was still as beautiful as ever. He just couldn't believe that Richard
had done what he had. She deserved so much better. Chandler shook his head, quickly dismissing the thoughts
that were making their way back into his head. The past was the past, he thought, recalling his earlier conversation with Joey at Central Perk. He looked at his watch, and realized that they had been gone for 20 minutes.
"We should probably go find the other guys, huh?" Chandler said quietly.
They looked over at Elaina, who was now knee-deep in stuffed toys.
Monica laughed. "How about I go get the others, and bring them back here. Elaina is having too much fun."
Chandler nodded and walked over to Elaina, as Monica went to find the rest of the group.

Monica caught up to the others as they were leaving the restaurant. She waved, and waited while they walked toward
her. Rachel grabbed Monica's arm, and pulled her slightly ahead of the others.
"So, what do you think is gonna happen between Ross and Emily?" Rachel asked, once they were out of earshot.
"I think they'll be fine. I'm sorry honey, I think it was just a fight."
"Yeah, that's what I thought too," Rachel said softly, fighting to control the lump that had formed in her throat.
She was over Ross. Totally over him. So why was she so upset? She shook her head, determined to move on.
"Where's Chandler and Elaina?" she said.
"In here," Monica pulled open the door to the toy shop, and she and Rachel walked in.
Chandler was sitting on the floor next to Elaina, and they were surrounded by toys. They were holding a silent
conversation, both of them grinning.
"He is so good to her," Rachel commented, as they watched Chandler and Elaina for a minute.
"He is," Monica said quietly.
"I never thought of Chandler in that way, ya know? As a father. He seems to be a natural," Rachel looked at Monica.
"Yes, he does," Monica whispered, though it was clear to Rachel that Monica wasn't really listening. She studied her
best friend's face, and couldn't help but notice that Monica was definitely seeing Chandler in a new way. She smiled, and said, "You know, he is quite a catch, now that his wife is gone."
Monica looked at Rachel, trying to figure out what she meant by that.
"Well, he still wears his ring, Rach."
Rachel looked at Monica and smiled. There was definitely something more there. She wondered if Chandler still
had feelings for Monica. The gang had never really talked to Chandler about it, but between the four of them,
they had all wondered if Chandler had left because of Monica.

*1998*

"What do you mean he's gone?" Ross said, as he, Rachel and Pheobe gathered in Chandler and Joey's apartment.
Joey had called all of them in a panic, and they had all dropped what they were doing to rush over.
"He's just gone. He moved out. He left me a bunch on rent money, and a note that says he's sorry."
"Why would he leave like that? I mean, I know he's been kind of depressed lately, but..." Ross said thoughtfully.
"He's been like that for over a year," Pheobe said, as though she just realized that it had been that long.
"That's true," Rachel added, "He's been depressed ever since Monica and Richard got married." Rachel's eyes
widened, and she looked back and forth at her friends. "Maybe he was in love with Monica!"
The others looked at Rachel strangely, but then thought that maybe she was right. Chandler had been acting
very strangely, and the timeline did fit.
"We should try to find him," Ross said, as the four friends walked out into the night.

*2007*

Rachel debated whether or not she should tell Monica about all of this. She shook her head. It really wasn't her
business. She had her own broken heart to deal with. She really didn't need to mess with anyone else's.

Monica watched Chandler silently for a minute more, unconsciously smiling to herself. He really was a cute father.
and Rachel was right, he was quite a catch, especially for a childless divorcee in her 30's. Monica shook her head.
What was she thinking? Regardless of what this Rebecca woman had done, Chandler was technically a married man.

Wasn't he?